Well, the current heat wave has destroyed my tank...

[Anonymous]

Not much looks 'normal' in there. The candy cane, both anemones, torch, octopus, white-center brown star polyps, mushrooms, and a few zooanthids look fine. All the xenia, GSP, hammer, gorgonians, most of the zooanthids, etc, are all crappy looking. I'm trying my best to maintain the temp, but the tank gets way too high up (90+) when I'm at work.

I've tried water changes with cooler water, ice cube bags in the sump, fans on the tank, lights off (I have VHO)...nothing works for long...

All the fish are fine so far...

Just venting, really, to those that may understand what I'm going thru...

Peace,

Chip

 

[purple_tang2001]

So sorry to hear of your loss, My first apartment was a oven as well, No matter what i did, i'd be losin a fish here and there. Since buying my house, there's alot to be said about central air.

 

[Nathan1]

marillion,

Why not by a chiller in the form of an AIR CONDITIONER?! Both you and your tank benefit and it's half the price of a standard tank chiller.

-Nathan

 

[JohnD]

Nathan,

Great idea. And yes, the price is right.

 

[Jacob1]

you need the following: A chair or table and a fan. Set the fan on the table or chair so that at leats helf of it is above the tank to blow across thetop of the tank. If you have a glass cover on the tank take it off. Raise the lighting temporarily(I used 2x4 and 1x2's to make a small but open platform around the rim and make sure that there is a lot of air blowing across the top of the tank. I have found this to be very effective as a temporary solution to high air temperatures. You will be evaporating a lot of H20 though so make sure you top off in the morning and at night

 

[zandar_tem]

I have the same problem and all I have done to keep the temp <90 is float Ice twice a day this heat wave is killer my clown cooked but everything else looks fine

ZT

 

[SPC]

I agree with Nathan and John, I would puchase a small window unit and put it in that room.
Steve

 

[Anonymous]

Trust me, if I could've, I would've, but it's in a HUGE room in the apartment (most of the apartment is one big room), and unfortunately the heat wave has hit me in a month where money is tight. Like I said, I'm not stating I've tried every avenue, because I don't have the a/c, but I'm just venting b/c it happened.

Peace,

Chip

 

[Adam1]

Fish, oops I mean Marillion (this will be funny to you if your screen name is related to the band... anyway on to the point...)

Here is a $20 chiller idea if your apartment pays for water. It wastes alot of water, but in a pinch, it can get you through a heat wave.

Go to home depot and buy an entire roll of 1/4" OD polyethylene tubing, an adapter to convert your kitchen faucet to a garden hose connector, a garden hose "Y" and two garden hose to 1/8" barb fitting.

Assemble all of the garden hose fittings so that you have the two 1/8" barbs coming out of the "Y", and the whole thing is hanging from your kitchen faucet.

Cut the coil of tubing approximately in half. Run the tubing to your sump, drop it in, and run the other end back to your sink. Turn on a trickle of water, and Waa-Laa (I never took french).

I would test it on a day that you are home to make sure you don't over chill.

As I said, this will wast mucho water, but you could try collecting some in the bathtub, buckets in the sink, etc and use it to water plants, or run it into the washing machine.

Good luck. My tank hit an all time high of 91.5 about two weeks ago, and some really prize acros bit the dust and that was with a chiller! So I sympathize with your situation.

Adam

 

[fishfarmer]

Have you tried running your lights at night? Here in Vermont the temp dips down a bit at night. Anothere thing to try is pull all the shades and curtains down in your place in the morning, should keep your rooms a little bit cooler. My tank is currently running at 88 since the beginning of the week, only the xenia unbellata looks stressed. I'm going to put blocks of ice in my tank tomorrow. Hang in there the heat wave is supposed to break by Saturday.

 

[Anonymous]

I would second the lights at night idea. I live in good ol Georgia in a house with no air. I run my tank lights from about 10 at night to 8 or 9 in the morning. If you are not home during the day why have the lights on if you can't see it any way? I had the same problem last year but since switching to a midnight reef I haven't had any problems.

Glenn

 

[wwinters]

I read this suggestion a few months ago and liked it so much I emailed it to myself. I don't know who posted it originaly but I hope it helps
Wendy

"I saw this in the Reef.Org DIY section. For a super cheap solution, try filling a styrofoam cooler with ice, about 100 feet of coiled plastic tubing, the 1/4 stuff is ok, get a power head connected, and pump it through the cooler. Works great on those days that you don't put the A/C on in the house. If you put the blue ice/packs in with the ice,it should last to the next day."

 

[naesco]

You may want to consider sticking and air diffuser in a corner to ensure that the oxygen level in the tank does not drop because of the heat.
I do not know the degree to which it would drop from 80F to say 92F but someone else may know and comment.
Thanks

 

[MontanaRocknReefer]

I bought a air conditioner and put it in my window and it has cooled our living room down and my reef tank as well. Johnny

 

[JohnD]

Chip,

Besides the bags or ice, have you tried this? Fill a couple of 2 liter bottles of water into your freezer overnight. In the morning, put them into your sump. This way you are dealing with chunks of ice and not cubes.

HTH

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah, I feel your pain. I lost my tank at work It only had guppies in it, but it is still the loss. I am watching my tanks at home as well--I am going through lots of ice.

B

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks to everyone for the sympathies/recommendations. It's supposed to hit 100 degrees here today, so I've done the following :

- Taken the canopy off, so no lights or hood.

- Put a stand fan on top of some egg crates so it blows across the top of the water

- Taken the cover off the sump, and placed two of the frozen water-filled Coke bottles in.

- Said a prayer to God that I don't lose anything else.

- Set aside some money towards an air conditioner.



I'll keep y'all posted what happens. Thanks again for the advice.

Peace,

Chip

[ August 09, 2001: Message edited by: marillion ]

 

[davelin315]

One other suggestion along the lines of the others. Instead of putting coke bottles in there, freeze large chunks of your R/O water and then just put it in there for the topoff, that way, it'll melt into your tank, and the colder water will sink down towards the bottom and permeate your tank. Also, turn off as many pumps as you can, as they conduct heat into the water. Also, if you have a chance, mix new saltwater with very cold water (it'll be tough to get the salinity correct, but give it a shot) and add that. Take the old water out and toss it into the freezer. It will freeze, but it will freeze at a lower temperature. Then put it back in (it will throw your salinity out of whack a little because it will freeze in layers) and that should help cool things down as well. Last suggestion, freeze some of your rocks and then put them back in your tank. They should hold the cold temperature for a bit longer and release the cold back into the water. Or, buy some new rocks and freeze them in water, and then put them in. They should create a colder area towards the bottom, and if you have a gentle current in the tank, it should keep the temperature fairly even and get your tank much cooler. Don't forget that water conducts heat away very quickly, and that it will hold a cooler temperature longer if you can bring it down enough.

 

[Anonymous]

Here's the 1pm update...the temp outside is a balmy 93 degrees and climbing, and my tank temperature is a cool 79 degrees.

Color me happy, for now. I'll continue to be happy until I have to scrape all the dead xenia off my rocks. :-(

Peace,

Chip

 

[sandmanrieast]

I freeze two liter pepsi bottles then float them in the sump.....